Hopes and Dreams
by aprilkitty
Summary: Regina hopes to find happiness with the baby she recently adopted. When she puts Henry in his crib at night, her dreams are haunted by the stable boy she once believed she would marry.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **_I'm not sure yet if this will just be a one-shot or if I will continue it. _

**Disclaimer:** _I don't own "Once Upon a Time" or the characters; I'm only borrowing them._

Regina Mills pushed the baby stroller along the street, surveying her town. Henry was being quiet and just looking around. The townspeople would coo at him and then look at her, murmur "Good evening Mayor Mills," and quickly walk away.

She had adopted Henry a couple of months ago, and it was amazing how much her life had changed. She used to spend nearly all of her time running the town and coming up with ways to further punish Snow White. Now she spent much of her time taking care of her son. She had bought Henry all sorts of toys to play with, and she read stories to him. She avoided reading "Snow White"; every version she had found was so inaccurate. She even sang lullabies to Henry when he was having trouble sleeping, though she would never tell anybody that.

Regina stopped for a minute to check on Henry before turning to head for home. She smirked when she looked up and saw who was heading her way.

Mary Margaret wasn't looking in Regina's direction, so Regina crashed into her, knocking the teacher over and scattering the papers she had been holding.

"Miss Blanchard, watch where you're going!" Regina snapped at her.

Mary Margaret looked up nervously at Regina. "I'm very sorry, Mayor Mills."

"I should hope so. What if you had hurt Henry in some way?"

Mary Margaret looked at Henry, who appeared to be distracted by a bird singing in a nearby tree.

"Oh, I'm sorry. He seems to be okay, though."

"I will determine whether Henry is okay or not. He could have been traumatized by this."

Henry was still watching the bird and started smiling as more birds joined in the chirping.

Mary Margaret smiled at Henry and then gathered her things. "I'm very sorry again, Mayor Mills."

"You better move along, Miss Blanchard. You wouldn't want to keep your boyfriend waiting," Regina said. "Oh, that's right. You don't have one."

Regina pushed the stroller away, smirking. Well, some things hadn't changed.

The night went by quickly after she got home. She fed Henry, read him a story about a choo-choo train, and then put him in his crib. She smiled as she watched him sleeping for a few minutes; he was her baby, and no one would ever take him away from her.

She yawned as she crawled into bed. Being a mother was exhausting. She fell asleep soon after her head hit the pillow.

Regina was lying with her head on Daniel's chest; he was stroking her hair as a breeze rustled the grass around them. The sun was shining, and the sky was a bright, shimmering blue. They were lying in the shade beneath their favorite tree.

"I'm so happy right now," Regina murmured.

"So am I," Daniel said.

"I want to stay like this forever," Regina said.

"If only we could."

Regina sat up, and Daniel followed. "Why can't we?"

Daniel looked at her sadly and reached out to stroke her cheek. "You know why, Regina."

Regina's eyes filled with tears. "Because this is just a dream," she said softly. "It's always just a dream."

Regina was always young in these dreams, and Daniel looked just as he always would look in her memories. She leaned in and kissed him, wishing that this moment would never end.

"I don't want to wake up," Regina said softly after they separated.

"You don't have to wake up right now."

"But I'll have to eventually," Regina said. "I never get what I really want."

"But didn't you get what you wanted with the curse?"

Regina sighed. "What I really want is you."

"You have me right now."

"Not for long enough, not for real," Regina whispered. "I just want to be happy."

"But wasn't the curse supposed to be your happy ending?"

"Snow White is suffering for betraying us."

"But are you happy?"

Regina sat in silence for a few moments. "I will be," she finally said. "I have a son now. He's so beautiful. I wish you could see him."

Daniel smiled. "I'm sure he is."

"Remember the children we talked about having? We were going to be so happy." Regina was crying again. She always cried in these dreams.

Daniel wiped her tears away and then took her hands in his. "Of course I do. It would have been wonderful."

They sat for a few moments, just holding hands and staring into each other's eyes. Then, Daniel started looking around.

"What is it, Daniel?" Regina asked.

"Do you hear that?"

Now Regina could hear it too. It sounded like crying, a baby crying…

Regina opened her eyes. She wiped a tear off her cheek as she slowly got out of bed. Her son needed her.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** _Thank you for the reviews! _

Regina looked in the mirror and decided she looked terrific considering how little sleep she had had. She had put on one of her nicest suits and some cover-up makeup under her eyes to hide the dark circles. She yawned; she would need to get some coffee and wake herself up. After all, it was Founder's Day.

Of course, it was only Founder's Day because Regina said so. It wasn't the anniversary of the actual day the curse was cast. Would any of the townspeople remember if she went up for her speech and talked about the real founding of the town? She looked at her speech and decided it was pretty good—not that it mattered, considering nobody would remember it for long anyway.

Regina came up with different stories every year about how her wonderful ancestors had founded Storybrooke. She also came up with different crazy activities for the festival as well; after all, she had to entertain herself. It could actually get pretty dull in Storybrooke with everybody but her walking around in a daze. Of course, she had particularly awful duties for Mary Margaret Blanchard. She smirked as she thought about her plans. That should be fun, at least.

Henry was playing with his stuffed bear in his crib. That was one of his favorite toys. Regina let Henry keep his bear as she picked him up and took him to his stroller.

It was a sunny but brisk day outside. Regina wondered if perhaps she should've put Founder's Day in the summer. Maybe she would do that next year. It wasn't like the townspeople knew the difference either way.

Everything was set up for the festival in front of the town hall. Currently, Mary Margaret was helping sell hot dogs. Regina had more fun in store for her later. Regina bought a hot dog and made sure that the ketchup splattered all over Mary Margaret.

"Oops," Regina said as the teacher stared down at the big red stain on her shirt.

Archie Hopper was standing over by the weight or age guessing game. Apparently the man working the game had guessed Archie's supposed age correctly. If only he knew how old he really was.

"Archie, I need a word with you."

Archie turned around. "Yes, Mayor Mills?"

"I need to know how Mary Margaret's sessions have been going. Has she told you anything interesting?"

Archie shuffled uncomfortably but answered as he always did. "Well, she just talked about how lonely she is. Whenever she goes on a date, nobody calls her back. And she can't seem to make any real friends."

Regina smiled. "Good."

Archie frowned but didn't say anything. Regina was pleased to see Mr. Gold harassing Mother Superior for the rent. She regular checked for signs that Mr. Gold was no longer under the curse. After all, it was his curse. And, at some point, Snow and Charming's child would show up. How old would the child be now? No longer a child, Regina realized with a little alarm. Any day now, somebody would be showing up to break the curse. Regina looked down at Henry. Regardless of who it was, she wouldn't let anyone hurt Henry.

For the time being, though, it wasn't a concern. No strangers had arrived in town. It was about time for Regina to give her speech to the townspeople. She scanned the crowd and found Sheriff Graham.

"Graham?"

"Yes, Regina?"

"Could you watch Henry for me for a few minutes while I give my speech?"

"I'd be happy to."

Graham was one of the only people Regina trusted to watch Henry, but it was still difficult to take her eyes off of Henry for even a few minutes. She could never shake the fear that she was going to lose him. She knew it was ridiculous, but she had lost everyone she had ever loved. She remembered her dream of Daniel and felt the ring in her pocket. She could see Mary Margaret heading toward the rest of the crowd. Regina scowled. She would make sure that Snow White continued to suffer for what she did.

Regina went up on the podium. Everyone stopped talking immediately. It was always nice to have such obedience.

"Residents of Storybrooke," she began, "today we celebrate the founding of our wonderful town."

Regina told her made-up story about the town's founding. This year's version included some lost fur traders and a few tragic deaths. She often threw in some tragedy. Nobody spoke up and said that the story was completely different than the one she told a year ago. Sometimes she almost wished somebody would.

Regina had organized to have a dating game on stage after her speech. Of course, Mary Margaret was one of the participants. Dr. Whale went up on stage, waving to the crowd as he took his seat.

Mary Margaret still had a stain on her shirt and was looking around self-consciously. Regina had arranged for Dr. Whale to embarrass the teacher as much as possible. Dr. Whale's first question was directed toward Ruby.

"Number 1, what do you look for in a guy?"

"I like my guys to be handsome and exciting," Ruby replied. "I like a little unpredictability."

Dr Whale smiled. "Well, then, you certainly wouldn't be disappointed. I'm all that and more."

Then Dr. Whale addressed the first of the series of uncomfortable questions to Mary Margaret.

"Number 2, how did your first serious relationship end?"

Mary Margaret turned red. "Well, I haven't really had any serious relationships."

"Really? Why not?"

"Um…I'm not sure," Mary Margaret said, frowning. "I suppose I just haven't found the right person."

"Well, I haven't had many serious relationships either, but that's because I get bored. Besides, there are so many ladies and only one of me."

Dr. Whale winked at the audience before continuing with his questions.

Regina was pleased to see that Mary Margaret looked thoroughly miserable by the end of the game, when, of course, Dr. Whale picked Ruby. Regina wasn't done with her yet though.

"Miss Blanchard."

Mary Margaret turned around with a wary look. "Yes, Mayor Mills?"

"I'd like you to take a turn in the dunk tank."

Mary Margaret's mouth dropped open. "But…I've already done so much here, and I've had such a bad day," Mary Margaret said.

Not nearly bad enough, Regina thought. It would never be bad enough.

"It's for a good cause," Regina said sweetly. "You wouldn't want to disappoint the nuns, would you?"

"No, of course not."

Mary Margaret took her place in the dunk tank, and it only took one throw for Regina to knock her down into the water.

"That was for you Daniel," Regina said softly. "It's all for you."

Regina looked down at Henry. He had been getting restless and was starting to cry. Regina picked him up and rocked back and forth for awhile.

"It's alright. We can go home now, Henry. I have punished Snow White sufficiently for today."

No matter how much she punished Snow White, though, she knew that it wouldn't stop her from crying in her dreams tonight.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** This is a shorter chapter, but it shows more of Regina's good side and includes a memory of Daniel. Thanks for reading and reviewing this story!

Regina arrived home with Henry and put the tired baby in his crib for a nap. She smiled as she watched Henry sleep for a few minutes. He was such a beautiful baby.

She thought about her day as she walked downstairs. It always seemed that she had a little satisfaction in the moment when she punished Snow White, but it was never enough to take away her pain. Besides, Mary Margaret wouldn't even remember this day a year from now. Regina sighed.

She sat down on the couch and took the ring out of her pocket. As always, she could see Daniel's face in the ring, and it brought back a memory of happier times.

_Regina and Daniel sat on their blanket on Firefly Hill. It was a beautiful day, and Daniel had never looked more handsome. Regina looked at the spread Daniel had brought—sandwiches, vegetables, fruit, and her favorite apple desserts._

"_You've really outdone yourself, Daniel," Regina said. _

_Daniel smiled at her and stroked her cheek. "Well, I know what you like."_

_Regina smiled back. "That you do," and she brushed her lips against his. It was a wonderful kiss; of course, every kiss was wonderful with Daniel._

"_We should probably get to eating soon, or animals are going to come and eat our food, and we won't even notice," Daniel teased._

_Regina laughed. They made their way through the great food that Daniel had brought._

_The picnic went by much too fast, and Regina's mother was expecting her for some boring "how to be a proper lady" lesson. Regina and Daniel gathered everything up and put the plates and blanket back in the big basket._

"_When will we see each other again?" Regina asked._

"_Well, I recommended to your father that you could really use another riding lesson tomorrow."_

_Regina smiled. "That's why I love you," she said before she caught herself._

_She looked up at Daniel, feeling a little concerned for what his reaction might be. That was the first time either of them had used the word "love."_

_Daniel smiled at her, his eyes lighting up. _

"_I love you, too."_

_He swept her up in his arms and kissed her, and at that moment, Regina's life felt perfect._

A clap of thunder jolted Regina from her thoughts. Where had that storm come from? There hadn't been a cloud in the sky earlier.

Regina put the ring back in her pocket and went upstairs to check on Henry. He was still fast asleep. She envied him a bit for being able to sleep so well.

Regina read a book as the rain poured down outside. The electricity flickered once but never went off.

Henry only woke up after the storm was over. After Regina had fed him and changed his diaper, she got out the big set of toy keys that he always enjoyed playing with. Regina laughed as he grabbed them from her. Regina played with him for quite awhile; it was amazing how fast the time went by.

Henry was smiling, and Regina found herself smiling, too. Maybe her dreams wouldn't be as painful tonight.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** Thank you for reading and reviewing!

It took Regina quite awhile to fall asleep that night. She tossed and turned for what felt like hours. She just couldn't seem to turn her thoughts off.

She started worrying about the future. What would she do when Henry got older? Would he notice that the other kids didn't age, or would the curse prevent him from noticing? She wished she could be certain of the answer to that question.

Regina normally didn't focus on things so far in the future, but Henry had changed all that. She found herself worrying so much more now.

Despite the worries going through her head, sleep eventually overtook her, and she was back in her dreams once again.

Regina and Daniel were sitting by their favorite lake. Daniel's arm was around Regina, and her head was resting on his shoulder. The sun was shining on the lake, which was a bright crystal blue. There was a little beach there, and Regina and Daniel were barefoot. The sand felt wonderful and warm under Regina's feet.

"Daniel, do you really believe that true love is the most powerful magic in the world?" Regina asked.

"Of course I do," Daniel said. "That's why our love can survive anything."

"Even my mother? She's pretty powerful, too."

"She's not more powerful than our love," Daniel replied.

He sounded so confident that Regina relaxed and enjoyed the feeling of the sunshine and Daniel's arm around her. It felt like they had stayed like that for quite awhile before Regina noticed the girl standing on the other side of the lake. She was dressed all in white, and she seemed very familiar. Regina sat up and looked at Daniel.

"Daniel, do you recognize that girl?" Regina pointed across the lake.

Daniel looked around. "What girl?"

Regina looked where the girl had been standing just moments before, and there was no one there. Maybe she had just imagined it.

"Well, apparently I'm seeing things that aren't there now." Regina laughed, but she still had a feeling that something was very wrong.

"Maybe we should head back," Daniel said, looking a little concerned.

"Maybe we should," Regina said. She didn't want to worry Daniel, but she couldn't shake this feeling of foreboding that had just developed.

They both stood up, and that was when Regina saw the girl again. She pointed. "There! Daniel, do you see her this time?"

"No, Regina, I don't. Are you sure you're all right? Maybe you're coming down with something."

"No, I feel fine," Regina said.

She couldn't understand where the girl had gone. A clap of thunder sounded in the distance. Regina turned around, and there were dark clouds coming toward them where there was sunshine only minutes ago.

"Now a storm is coming in," Daniel said. "We better get going."

Daniel put his arm around her again as they walked quickly back. The thunder was getting louder now.

The girl in white appeared once again. Regina was starting to remember now. That girl's name was Snow White. She tugged on Daniel's sleeve.

"Daniel, we can't go home," Regina said, urgency creeping into her voice. "We have to run."

"Run? Regina, what are you talking about?"

Just as Regina was getting Daniel to turn around, though, Regina's mother showed up in front of them.

"Where do you think you're going?" her mother asked, her voice menacing.

"Daniel!" Regina said, and this time, she could tell that Daniel understood they needed to get out of there.

They ran as fast as they could before Cora could go after them, but Snow White showed up in front of them again, this time all grown up and eating an apple. Right after Snow appeared, Cora appeared.

"You should know better than to try to outrun me Regina."

Before Regina could even react, Cora had Daniel's heart in her hand, and Daniel collapsed to the ground.

"This is your happy ending," her mother said.

"Noooo!"

Regina woke up in a cold sweat. How many times had Daniel died in her dreams now? Too many to count.

Regina looked at the clock. It was a little after five o'clock. She knew that she wouldn't get back to sleep, so she got out of bed and splashed some water on her face. Then Regina went downstairs and made some coffee. She had only taken a few sips when she heard Henry crying. He was awake a little earlier than usual.

Regina went back upstairs and walked to Henry's crib. When she started to pick him up, she could feel how hot he was. He had a fever, and it had to be a pretty high one.

Regina started to panic, but she managed to throw some clothes on and take Henry down to the car. She struggled with the car seat because her hands were shaking.

She gripped the steering wheel as she headed toward the hospital. The doctors had to be able to help her. She couldn't lose Henry. She just couldn't.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Thank you for reading and reviewing!

Regina rushed into the emergency room with Henry in her arms.

"I need to see Dr. Whale immediately," Regina told the first nurse she saw.

As soon as she saw Dr. Whale, she told him about Henry's fever. "Is he going to be all right?" Regina asked as the doctor checked Henry's temperature.

"Well, his fever is quite high," Dr. Whale said, "but it's most likely nothing serious. We'll work on bringing the fever down and figuring out what infection he has. It's probably just a virus."

The nurses encouraged Regina to sit down, but she didn't want to, so she paced back and forth down the hall for a while. Finally, Regina sat down. The time went by, and every time she checked, the nurses would tell her that they were still working on bringing Henry's fever down.

Regina closed her eyes and found herself lost in old memories again.

"_Daniel, do you want to have children?"_

"_Yes, definitely," Daniel replied. "Do you?"_

"_Yes," Regina said. "I'm going to be nothing like my mother though. I'm not going to force any of my children to be someone they're not."_

"_I think you'll be a great mother, Regina."_

_Regina smiled. "And you'll be a great father."_

_Daniel took her hand, and they continued walking. _

"_What would you name your children?" Regina asked._

"_You mean, our children?"_

_Regina blushed. "Well, yes, our children."_

"_Hmmm…Well, for a boy, I'm partial to John."_

"_John?"_

_Daniel shrugged. "It's simple. I like simple."_

_Regina nodded. "Simple is good."_

"_What about you?" Daniel asked._

_Regina thought about it for a while._

"_Honestly, I'm not sure. All I know is that Cora is definitely out of the question."_

"_Yes, I think we can agree on that."_

"_I might consider Henry for a son, though."_

_Daniel nodded, but she couldn't tell what he thought of that idea._

_Regina and Daniel continued walking for a while, still holding hands._

"_I'm going to be a good person, Daniel," Regina said. "I'm going to do good things in this world. We're going to do good things together."_

_Daniel turned and put his arms around Regina._

"_You are a good person," Daniel said. "You're the person I love the most in this world."_

_Regina smiled. "I love you, too."_

A phone rang, and it startled Regina from her thoughts. She sighed and paced a bit more before sitting back down again. She put her head in her hands. She had been sitting like that for a few minutes when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

Regina looked up, and Mary Margaret quickly removed her hand.

"Mayor Mills…"

"What are you doing here?" Regina interrupted.

"It's Saturday," Mary Margaret said quietly. "I always volunteer at the hospital on Saturdays."

"Oh." Regina felt too exhausted to come up with anything else to say.

"Mayor Mills, I know…"

"You don't know anything!" Regina snapped.

"Maybe not," Mary Margaret said, "but I really believe that Henry will be just fine."

Regina just nodded, and Mary Margaret gave her a sympathetic smile and walked away.

Regina got up and went to the bathroom. She stood in front of the mirror. There was nobody here to see her. She finally let herself really cry. She let the tears run down her face for a few minutes. Then, she wiped the tears away, splashed some water on her face, and touched up her makeup.

She went to the nurse and asked for an update on her son. "Actually, Dr. Whale was just about to come out and talk to you," the nurse said.

Regina's heart skipped a beat. What kind of news would it be? What kind of news could she stand?

Dr. Whale looked perfectly calm when he walked out, though.

"Regina, Henry will be just fine," Dr. Whale said.

Regina let out the breath she had been holding.

"His fever has come down?"

"Yes," Dr. Whale said. "You should be able to take care of Henry at home. We'll give you some instructions."

"Thank you, Dr. Whale," Regina said gratefully.

"You don't need to thank me, Regina," Dr. Whale said. "Henry probably would have been fine if he hadn't come here too. It's just a virus that needs to run its course. Keep me updated though, and let me know if it gets any worse."

Regina nodded. "Thank you again, Dr. Whale."

Regina smiled. Her son was going to be all right.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **This is the last chapter of this story, but a sequel is definitely possible if anyone is interested. The sequel would most likely take place after magic returns to Storybrooke. Thank you for reading and reviewing!

For the next few days, Regina stayed home and took care of Henry. She had never stayed home from the office for so long, but Graham could handle any town business for a little while. Her son needed to be her priority.

She sang a lullaby to Henry to help him get to sleep. Regina wondered if her mother had ever sung lullabies to her when she was a baby. It was certainly hard for her to picture.

Regina watched Henry sleep for a while and then went to bed herself. Soon she was back in her dreams with Daniel once again.

This time, though, Regina wasn't a teenager anymore. Daniel still looked the same as he did in her memories, but Regina looked as she did in Storybrooke. She was dressed in a gray dress.

"I'm so much older than you now," Regina said. "How did that happen?"

"Well, I had my heart ripped out, so I can't really age."

Regina was a little taken aback. Daniel had never brought that up in any of her dreams before.

"I know why you're young, but why am I older? Usually, everything is just like it was years ago."

"I don't know, Regina," Daniel said. "You tell me."

Regina frowned. She really had no idea. Sometimes she was aware she was in a dream, but everything about this dream just felt different. She looked around. She was beginning to notice just how different this dream was. They were in the woods, but as they were walking, she could see the town. They weren't in the Enchanted Forest. They were in Storybrooke.

"Why are we in Storybrooke?" Regina asked. She turned to Daniel. "You've never been in Storybrooke before."

"Maybe I could be."

Regina froze. Was Daniel really saying what she thought he was saying?

"Do you mean there's a way to bring you back?"

"There could be," Daniel said. "Maybe you just need to be patient."

Regina shook her head. "But, there's so little magic here, and even if there were, I don't know if it's even possible to bring someone back from the dead."

"Anything is possible," Daniel said. "After all, true love is the most powerful magic of all."

Daniel wrapped his arms around Regina and kissed her. He had kissed her in her dreams before, but never like this.

"I will always love you, Daniel," Regina whispered.

"And I will always love you, Regina."

Regina opened her eyes. The birds were chirping outside. She thought about her dream. Was there really a way to bring Daniel back, or was that just wishful thinking in her mind? It was most likely the latter, but that was certainly one of the nicer dreams she had had lately.

Regina went in to check on Henry. She was happy to see that his fever was completely gone. He seemed to be feeling better this morning, and it was an unusually nice day outside. She decided to go for a short walk with him.

Regina pushed Henry's stroller and enjoyed the sunshine and warmth. Henry was looking around and seemed to be fascinated by a few birds singing in a tree again. Regina stopped for a moment and adjusted Henry's blankets.

She saw something out of the corner of her eye and looked up to see Mary Margaret walking along with her eyes on the papers in her hands again.

Today, though, Regina just let her pass by.

She looked down at Henry, and he smiled up at her. She smiled back and then leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.

"I love you, Henry," Regina said softly. "You are my happy ending."


End file.
